Everyone’s Waiting

I’ve learned this week that good problems are as challenging as the ones you don’t want. My good problem is that three companies would like me to work for them. One, I already work for. Another gave me a great offer. The other was promising, but ultimately the commute would have killed me. So, now it’s down to two. I thought the choice would be easy for me, but that turns out not to be the case.

I am a Mac/iOS software engineer. I intentionally never say who I work for or what products I work on, because I want a clean separation between my identity and my employer on this blog. I’ll just say that for the last year I’ve been assigned to cross-platform applications for graphics and animation. These are powerful tools with some engineers behind them that are masters at their craft. I, however, am not comfortable in the genre. My history has been writing Mac-centric system utilities. I feel like Michael Jordan playing baseball. It’s awkward. So, I’ve kept my résumé in circulation.

The key point that I should make here is that I’ve been with my current employer for more than 15 years. That’s an eternity in the software industry. The company has been good to me, and for most of the ride I’ve been quite happy. My discomfort now is not a problem with the company. It’s a simple conflict of personal desires.

The company I’m considering leaving for is tiny, but the position has a lot of appeal. It’s a chance to do some serious iOS coding on an app I’d own top to bottom. The offer they game me is a nice offer I’m happy with. When it was presented to me, I took it home thinking this is absolutely what I want.

Today, I had to do more than imagine leaving the place that’s so long been my home. I had to tell my current employer that I intended to take the position. That was really hard for me to do. There’s the personal connection to the people I know and the reality of how it will substantively impact plans if I go. I knew they would make a counter offer to keep me. I could have just said flat out that I had made up my mind to take the new position, and avoided that. But there’s a sense of allegiance that lingers with me. They’ve been very good to me. And indeed, they did counter.

I haven’t pulled the final trigger yet. It’s become a very hard decision for me, a battle between my heartfelt personal desires and the weight of personal history, plus the life-altering risks of change versus the safety of the known. It’s courage vs. prudence.

So, everyone is waiting. What will he do? There are three camps. My employer, my potential employer, and my friends in the know about all that’s transpired. It feels like the climax to a movie. Everyone wants it to end a certain way. But there’s no fiction here. I just have to decide what I’m willing to give up to gain.

UPDATE:

I weighed out things carefully and decided to continue with the company I work for. It was a complicated decision. The reality is I’m getting paid well to contend with awkward feelings, but now there’s full disclosure. In some sense, I’m betting on the possibility of doing significant iOS work down the line in my job, which I would certainly find more personally appealing. I’ve also reevaluated my role on the team after talking with my manager and the project lead. It gives me some perspective. Now to play the cards.

Advertisement